Saudi Arabia Increases Oil Production To Utmost Limit Despite Shrinking Demand - Reports

Saudi Arabia Increases Oil Production to Utmost Limit Despite Shrinking Demand - Reports

Saudi Arabia has made good on its promise to increase oil production despite a sharp drop in demand due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with some tankers leaving ports without destinations, The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday, citing the country's officials

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 01st April, 2020) Saudi Arabia has made good on its promise to increase oil production despite a sharp drop in demand due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with some tankers leaving ports without destinations, The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday, citing the country's officials.

Earlier in the day, the OPEC+ agreement on reducing oil production expired, as the sides failed to come to mutually acceptable terms for a new deal in early March.

According to the newspaper, the Saudis have increased their production by up to 12 million barrels per day, the best they are capable of, and hired more tankers, which, however, have been sent off without a destination, one official told WSJ.

As the countries throughout the world institute quarantines to prevent the spread of COVID-19, the global economy is slowing down, reducing the need for energy and oil products, thus lowering oil prices. The recent OPEC+ talks were meant to work out a response from the oil producers, but failed due to the sides disagreeing on a mutually acceptable strategy.